WOODSTOCK, NY (September 12, 2017) - The 2017 Woodstock Film Festival will showcase 4 World Premieres, 5 North American Premieres, 1 US Premiere, 20 East Coast Premieres and 10 New York Premieres. *Detailed information can be found below.

SPOTLIGHT ON WOMENIN FILM AND MEDIA will feature 18 female directors who will present their work (a third of the festival’s offerings!) including the World Premiere of Lisa France's Roll With Me.

LGBTQ FOCUS will highlight 6 beautiful films, including the East Coast Premiere of Becks, a film directed by Elizabeth Rohrbaugh and Daniel Powell.

WORLD CINEMA with a special focus on Dutch Cinema, presenting 10 international feature films, including the US Premiere of Waterboys, directed by Robert Jan Westdijk.

FOCUS ON MUSIC will spotlight films featuring music of diverse genres, including the New York Premiere of Michael Berry's subway musical, Stuck, featuring performances by Giancarlo Esposito, Ashanti and others.

EXPOSURE programming focuses on films that explore and challenge social, political and environmental themes, such as the New York Premiere Jamie Redford's Happening: A Clean Energy Revolution.

FILMS OF THE HUDSON VALLEY highlight local ties via locations, filmmakers, and/or actors from this creative hub, including The Strange Ones, directed by Christopher Radcliff and Lauren Wolkstein.

The fiercely independent 18th Annual Woodstock Film Festival presents an outstanding lineup of films to be shown in Woodstock, Rhinebeck, Rosendale, Saugerties, and Kingston.

To kick off the 18th Annual Woodstock Film Festival, there will be a live performance by operatic soprano Sarah Joy Miller, star of the short film A Hand of Bridgefollowed by the East Coast premiere of Stuck, a musical narrative about a group of six strangers trapped together on a stalled New York City subway car. The characters confront their assumptions of one another under the scrutinizing eye of a mysterious homeless man played by Giancarlo Esposito. This kickoff event will begin at 7PM October 11 at the Woodstock Playhouse.

The remainder of the films can be found under the corresponding sections below of NARRATIVE FEATURES, DOCUMENTARY FEATURES and SHORTS.

“This year’s lineup is one that challenges our creative and intellectual boundaries and brings important social issues into focus, both locally and globally" said Woodstock Film Festival’s co-founder and executive director Meira Blaustein. "In today's political climate it is particularly important to celebrate our differences and find our commonalities. This year's participating filmmakers have gone above and beyond in capturing diverse moments of humanity that personify fierce independence.”

This year the festival presents films selected from over 2,000 entries from around the globe. Countries represented include France, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom and the USA. A majority of the films in the lineup will be screened with the filmmakers and cast/subjects in attendance.

The iconic Woodstock Film Festival was created in the year 2000. Since then, it has become one of the foremost regional independent film festivals. Establishing itself as a ground-breaking festival that offers a unique platform for filmmakers around the globe, the Woodstock Film Festival has been named among the top 50 film festivals worldwide.

TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE SEPTEMBER 20 ONLINE AND OVER THE PHONE (845-810-0131)

The WOODSTOCK FILM FESTIVAL BOX OFFICE (13 Rock City Road, Woodstock, NY) will be open:

September 20 to October 8 • Wednesday through Sunday, from Noon-6PM (Closed Mondays and Tuesdays)

October 9-14 • Daily from 9AM to 7PM

October 15 • 9AM to 6PM

NARRATIVE FEATURES

The 2017 Narrative Features hail from all corners of the world. This year, the festival offers a variety of narratives that are sure to provoke thought and deeply move the audience. Outstanding performances reflect the stories of families dealing with grief and transition, challenge the status quo, and the full range of human experience.

The 2017 documentary features represent diverse voices of culture and span a wide range of topics and issues, from alternative energy, to artificial insemination, LGBTQ, mental health, Tibetan traditions and law. Prepare to have your world view challenged and expanded through these thought-provoking documentaries.

The annual Maverick Awards Ceremony has become one of the most talked-about events attracting more than 500 filmmakers, industry professionals and community leaders and guests. The event is open to the public. Individual and full-table tickets are available at the Woodstock Film Festival Box Office or online.

The 2017 Maverick Awards Ceremony will present several honors including:

MAVERICK AWARD, recipient Susan Sarandon

EXCELLENCE IN ACTING AWARD, recipient Bill Pullman

TRAILBLAZER AWARD, recipient Shep Gordon

Best Feature Narrative, Best Feature Documentary, Best Short Narrative, Best Short Documentary, Best Student Short, Best Animated Short, the James Lyons Editing Award (Documentary and Narrative), the Haskell Wexler Award for Best Cinematography, the Ultra Indie Award, the Carpe Diem Andretta Award and the World Cinema Award